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A friend for Farouk (key stage 1)
Respect for all: A friend for Farouk
This activity was used with children in key stage 1, year 2.
Aims
- To understand the need to respect racial and cultural differences.
- To develop a concern for others.
- To understand the importance for people to live in freedom from discrimination and prejudice.
Activity objectives
- To understand the feelings of isolation and rejection.
- To explore different kinds of prejudice and examine stereotyping.
- To develop a charter of rights for their community.
This activity relates to the following components in the key stage 1 PSHE and citizenship framework:
- recognising what they like and dislike, what is fair and unfair (1a);
- taking part in discussions (2a, 5c);
- recognising choices they can make (2c);
- realising that people have needs (2e);
- recognising how their behaviour affects other people (4a);
- identifying and respecting the differences and similarities between people (4c);
- learning that there are different types of teasing and bullying (4e);
- considering social and moral dilemmas (5g).
Activity description
The teacher read the story A friend for Farouk to the class.
This account, based on a true story, is seen through the eyes of a boy named Farouk.
Story summary
Farouk arrives in the UK with his parents. They are refugees from a land torn apart by fighting and killing. Farouk finds it difficult to settle since he speaks little English. Fortunately the teacher, at least, was welcoming. Farouk feels isolated, especially when his brother leaves the infant school. Then Lenny arrives and Farouk finds a friend. Lenny is a Traveller and feels isolated like Farouk. One day, Lenny is away from school: this becomes a regular occurrence. Farouk witnesses some bigger boys picking on Lenny. Lenny explains that this always happens to Travellers. Soon after this, Lenny leaves the school, although he says that he hopes to be back in the autumn. But one day the teacher announces that Lenny won't be returning after all. Farouk feels isolated again, but there is a glimmer of hope as another pupil comments: 'Miss, it will be hard for Farouk if Lenny's not coming back'. After that, many of the children begin to be more friendly towards Farouk.
Discussion
The pupils worked in pairs or groups to answer the following questions:
Why was Farouk not made to feel welcome at first?
Was Farouk treated fairly? If not, why not?
What should the children in his class have done differently? Why?
In what ways was Lenny treated like Farouk and in what ways was he treated differently from Farouk?
Was Farouk treated worse than Lenny? Was Lenny treated worse than Farouk? Or were they treated the same?
Was there any truth in all the stories that people told about Lenny? (for example stereotyping of Travellers). If not, then where did these ideas come from?
Why do you think people would believe stories that might not be true?
What arguments would you use to tell the boys who were unkind to Lenny to leave him alone?
At the end of the discussion, the children drew up some rules about how to treat other people in the class and the school.
Stereotyping: thinking things through
The teacher explained the notion of a stereotype and talked about the unfair labelling and subsequent treatment of people due to general misconceptions about their ethnic or cultural heritage. The teacher also described how stereotyping happens to many people and that there are laws against treating people unfairly due to their race, skin colour or nationality. The children were asked if they thought the law could change people's attitudes and if they could suggest what else might be done to help people of different communities get along together.
Community building
The children described how they thought Farouk and Lenny felt when they were left out and teased. They were then invited to describe a personal experience that was similar to the story.
Commentary
The children listened attentively to the story and entered willingly into discussion. The initial discussion session allowed all children to have their say. The children recognised unfair treatment in the story more easily than they did in real life, and several children were able to link the story to incidents from their own life experience. This helped other children to recognise unfairness and to comment on the effect our own behaviour has on other people. One astute child gave the example of people who sit back and do nothing.
Discussion ensued around the statement: 'Those who aren't with me are against me'. The children came to the consensus view that there is always a positive course of action to be taken, even if good decision-making may prove difficult at times. Issues of peer pressure and loyalty were also discussed.
The teacher allowed the children to discuss any issues that arose, without dominating the discussion. The teacher realised that everyone learns more if children are allowed to speak for themselves.
Points to note
This activity prompted further work about the plight of refugees, based on a resource pack, Across and beyond (BBC Education), that looked at a variety of citizenship activities in the primary school. Children could draw up a charter of rights for all children in the school. Such a charter could begin, for example, 'We believe that all children in our school have the right to …'.
If the session on community building is included in a lesson, children must have ground rules for working together and the teacher must enforce them. Further information is included in the key stage 1 and 2 scheme of work for citizenship (QCA, 2002).
Links with the LEA Traveller education service may be helpful, particularly if the children's responses reveal a need for greater awareness and understanding.
The work was planned as part of the ongoing citizenship education from You! Me! Us! (Citizenship Foundation, 1994), a resource pack with a section devoted to respecting differences (plus follow-up activities for key stage 2).
Resources
Rowe, D and Newton, J, You! Me! Us!, Citizenship Foundation, 1994. Online information and sample PDF material for key stages 1 and 2 ('A friend for Farouk') are available at the Citizenship Foundation website: www.citfou.org.uk/our_work/all_pub.php4
Across and beyond, BBC Education
The citizenship schemes of work can be found at www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/schemes
The online national curriculum can be found at www.nc.uk.net
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